


Silent Lover

by thefrenchmilitary



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Modern AU, Zutara
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-08
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:53:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,455
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28392705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thefrenchmilitary/pseuds/thefrenchmilitary
Relationships: Katara/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 123





	Silent Lover

He was always the last student to leave the lecture hall. He always asked the most questions, took the most notes, and spent the most time studying. He always declined invitations to parties in favor of getting some work done.

So why was Zuko staring down at yet another C?

The quiz paper was wrinkled on both sides from his vice like grip. The red ink pointing out and slashing through his mistakes taunted him in a way that made him want to scream and hide and the same time. No matter what he did he could never manage to get a perfect mark in any of his classes. The best he could do, the best he could _be_ , was _average_.

Something that might as well be failure in his family.

He had been excited when he received the University's acceptance letter two years ago. It felt like a long awaited triumph after a life of being lackluster. He thought it proved, once and for all, that he wasn't the family disgrace. He was capable of being the successful son his father wanted and was worthy of respect like his prodigy sister. Things were starting to look up.

Until he announced his acceptance to his family.

His father's face was as cold and distant as ever. He offered no congratulations, no praise. All he did was continue to pour over the several business reports lining his desk.

Disheartened, Zuko excused himself from his father's office, but not before catching a slight glint in his father's harsh eyes. It was a look with a meaning Zuko knew all too well.

_Let's see how long it takes for you to mess this up._

His sister had been no better. At first she snatched the letter from his hands, doubting it's legitimacy, but when the unmistakable seal of the esteemed University stared back at her she dismissed it with a shrug.

"Well, given how much money they get from our family every year it's not all that surprising that they'd give you a pity admission," she taunted as she threw the letter back in Zuko's face. "Our father, grandfather, and great grandfather were among the best graduates the University has ever seen. You're a disgrace to their legacy."

 _Legacy_. Zuko crushed the quiz into a tiny ball before throwing it in the nearest trashcan. His peers all had something special that gave them the right to be at such a prestigious school: amazing grades, noble volunteer causes, exceptional athletic aptitude. All he had was the unearned power of his family's name.

Dragging his feet along the paved path, he mentally cursed his own ineptitude. Even now, in the face of defeat, all he could do was wallow in his own self pity. Instead of stocking off in a random direction after getting his quiz back he should have gone straight to the library to study harder.

"Ah!" His left hand recoiled up to his chest when he felt something small take hold of it. Looking down, he saw a little boy no older than three or four staring up at him.

"Can you come play? We need someone else for our team. 'S not fair the other team gets Miss. Katara," the boy said.

"...huh?" Zuko, ever so eloquent, could only make a small noise of confusion. His eyes darted around the surrounding area and he spotted a medium sized building, a playground, and the University's southernmost parking lot. Somehow, in his depressed state, he had walked all the way to the University's child care facility.

Suddenly, someone came running up to him from the playground's open gate. It was a girl, only about a year or two younger than him. Her dark brown hair was tied back in a neat braid and she was casually dressed in a white short sleeved blouse and light blue jeans.

"I'm so sorry, I hope he didn't bother you." Her apology to Zuko was brief, yet sincere. Before he could respond, the girl got down to the little boy's level. "Lee, you shouldn't wander off without telling anyone, okay? And you shouldn't go up to strangers either, we were all worried about you."

As the boy uttered a quiet apology, Zuko couldn't help but notice the badge hanging from the girl's blouse. It was one that marked her as a student volunteer. Then, as quickly as she had come, she took Lee's hand and disappeared back behind the daycare's gate.

Zuko gasped for air as his shoes repeatedly slapped against the sidewalk. Everyone had warned him not to sign up for an eight a.m. class, but he had stubbornly, and _stupidly_ , refused to listen. He had always considered himself a morning person and he had taken classes as early as seven a.m. all throughout high school. Surely this would be no different.

Oh, how wrong he'd been.

He wasn't sure what it was. Maybe it was because he was getting older. Maybe it was the exhaustion from the increased workload. Maybe it was his student diet of instant noodles and vending machine snacks. Or maybe it was the fact that attendance was optional.

Whatever the reason, there was no doubt that over the last few weeks getting up and out of bed this early was getting more and more challenging. Last week he had barely made it to the door in time to hear the professor start the lecture. This week he was sure he'd get there _at least_ fifteen minutes late.

"Okay, but we're not talking about me right now, we're talking about you."

Something about the motherly sternness in the random voice made Zuko stop his mad sprint. His chest heaved with his labored breaths as he watched someone exit the main building. As they got closer, he realized it was the daycare's student volunteer he had seen a little over two weeks ago.

Her hair was tied up in a messy bun and her outfit consisted of a white tank top, blue pajama pants, and a sturdy pair of outdoor slippers. She let out a small yawn as she attempted to wrestle a muffin out of its plastic wrapping while keeping her phone sandwiched between her ear and shoulder.

"The difference between us is that I actually know my limits," she said as she finally freed her muffin. "Honestly Sokka, if you're going to be late you might as well stop and have some breakfast. Knowing you you'll get delirious and fall off the boat if you don't."

Zuko could see her take a few bites out of the muffin before she was completely out of sight. As if on cue, his own stomach let out a pained growl. Cupping his belly, he wondered how many weeks it had been since he had sat down and had a proper breakfast. Nowadays he just seemed to roll out of bed in a hurry without bothering to eat so much as a granola bar before class.

His stomach growled again and Zuko contemplated if going to class was even worth it at this point. He was already late and with how hungry he was there wasn't a very good chance he'd be able to focus. Besides, he did have some left over money his Uncle had sent him...

Turning on his heel, Zuko walked away from the campus. There was a small diner just a few streets away that served the best pancakes and omelets. At least, that's what Zuko had heard.

He'd just have to go and find out for himself.

Using the small towel around his neck, Zuko wiped off the last few beads of sweat lining his forehead. Even though he had only been using them for a short while, he was thoroughly enjoying the University's fitness center. It was fun to let off steam and get his mind off of studies for once.

Which was a bit ironic considering he'd been doing noticeably better in all his classes. Ever since he started eating actual food and sticking to a regular exercise schedule it was as if a mental fog had been cleared from his mind. He could focus better and actually feel himself absorbing the material instead of trying to blindly memorize it without truly _understanding_ it.

With the way he was improving it wasn't outside the realm of possibility to raise his gpa to a perfect 4.0 before the end of the semester. He'd love to see the look on Azula's face when she realized that he was just as good as she was.

Grabbing his gym bag, Zuko exited the building and spotted a mass of wavy brown hair neatly cascading down a jean jacket clad back. Almost instinctively he knew he had run into the daycare volunteer yet again.

She was crouched down, balancing on the soles of her boots. Her hand furiously dug through her enamel pin decorated rucksack until she found what she had been searching for: a reusable water bottle. After unscrewing the cap, she poured the liquid onto a group of budding dandelions struggling to grow in one of the several raised brick beds the University owned. 

"There, that's better isn't it?" She cooed softly while twisting the cap back on her bottle. "It must be hard to bloom when everyone considers you to be a weed. So what if you're not a rose or an orchid? You have an appeal all your own and have just as much of a right to grow. Pretty soon you'll turn into something beautiful."

Getting back to her feet, she slung her backpack over her shoulder and walked towards the dorms.

Zuko stared after her for what seemed like an eternity. There were thousands of other students enrolled in the University, yet he somehow kept managing to run into _her_. He was seeing this girl more than he was seeing his own sister, which was mind boggling considering that Azula's dorm room was just down the hall from his own. If he were a more superstitious man he might be able to delude himself into thinking this was fate.

Looking away from the girl's disappearing form, Zuko brought his attention down to the dandelions in the flower bed. It was clear that the gardeners had been doing their best to rip out all the weeds from the otherwise picturesque bed. The small buds that managed to grow back were limp and almost sickly looking, but they had clearly perked up a bit from the water they had just been given.

Did that girl come down to water them every day or was what he had witnessed a one time thing? He couldn't figure out why someone would spend so much time tending to something that was for all intents and purposes a lost cause. The dandelions would be gone by tomorrow if any of the gardeners happened to notice them. 

Zuko walked away from the raised bed, but out of the corner of his eye he saw a group of fully bloomed dandelions hidden under the safety of a butterfly bush.

Group projects were the bane of Zuko's existence and if the weather was any kind of sign or omen to go off of he knew his partners were bound to leave him hanging _again_. The sky was a depressing grey and the wind howled with a vengeance. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that a storm was coming and as Zuko pulled the drawstrings of his hood tighter around his cold face he wondered why he was even trying to get to the student center.

His so called partners had stood him up every day for the past week, despite the fact that _they_ were the ones picking out the times and locations they would supposedly get their project done. Zuko was tired of waiting alone for hours as he double and triple checked the group chat that everyone else seemed to have muted. Their lack of reliability had forced him to finish nearly everything on their project and now, with a predicted 92% chance of rain, he cursed himself for going out to meet them instead of staying in bed to complete the job himself. He already knew they wouldn't be in the student center like they promised.

Turning back towards the dorms, he felt the first few drops of rain fall onto an exposed tuff of hair sticking outside his hood. Cursing, he hunched over and tightly clutched his laptop to his chest to prevent it from getting wet as he started to run. The small droplets of water soon grew bigger and began to fall in a harsh, increased tempo that soaked through his hoodie. Knowing he'd be completely drenched before he could make it back to the dorms, Zuko ran underneath the dry safety of an overhead pavilion.

Catching his breath, he examined his laptop for any damage. Thankfully there was none, but for the time being it looked as though he would be stuck here until the storm cleared up. Sighing, he leaned against one of the pavilion's pillars and watched as the campus became drenched in rain water.

As he scanned the area, his heart rate doubled when his eyes locked with the strange yet familiar form he had nearly grown accustomed to seeing.

For a second, she stood perfectly still in the pouring rain. It was as if she was standing in her own little world, completely oblivious to everything around her. Then, she broke out into a smile, spread her arms out wide, and let her head fall back in the shower. She looked completely at ease with her wet hair sticking to her face and her drenched blue cardigan clinging to her body.

Moving her feet at last, she continued to revel in the rain as she slowly made her way to the computer lab. Once she was out of sight, Zuko let out a quiet hum. Lifting his hand, he extended his upright palm outside the safety of the pavilion and toward the sky. The cold rain water soaked and pooled in his palm in an almost refreshing way. He had always preferred drier weather, but for some reason he found himself enjoying the sensation.

After months of grueling classes and assignments it was once again that time of the semester: finals week. All throughout campus hundred of college students were running on coffee and anxiety as they poured over textbooks and notes while calculating just how badly they could afford to screw up on their exams without completely tanking their grade point average. It was nearly impossible to find a place to study that wasn't already crowded with bodies, backpacks, and the loud bustle of at least half a dozen mental breakdowns happening at once.

Zuko's backpack seemed to grow heavier as he weaved his way through yet another wall of students. At this rate he'd never get any work done unless he went to the one place no one, not even he, dared to go.

Steeling his nerves, he buttoned up the wool pea coat his Uncle had sent him as he pushed through the unrelenting flood of students lining the halls until he finally got out of the University's main building. Once outside, Zuko's teeth chattered as snow lazily fell in a steady flurry. Winter had consumed the landscape over the last few days, leaving several inches of white powder between Zuko and his less than ideal destination. Still, he soldiered on towards the east. Towards the place no one else would be.

After about fifteen minutes, and nearly falling and cracking his head open twice, Zuko made it to one of the oldest buildings on campus: the Univerity's very first library. The thing was tiny and ancient, with no central heating or cooling system to be found. It was always either boiling hot or freezing cold in these facilities, making it the one place no one would be caught dead.

Unless every other option was off the table.

Sighing, Zuko entered the library and was immediately greeted by a frigid burst of air. Goosebumps rose all over his body from the contact and he felt himself violently shiver. 

"Damn it, I should've at least brought something warm to drink," he muttered to himself. "At least it's quiet," he rationalized as a last ditch effort to convince himself coming here was worth it.

Stepping further inside, he set his things down on a nearby chair when a mass of brown waves by the farthest window caught his attention. Curiosity got the better of him as he walked towards the girl doubled over on the table.

Her head was resting on the open pages of the textbook she had been reading and her pencil was somehow still perfectly grasped in her right hand. Underneath her left hand were several pages of hand written notes and just a finger length away there were two large coffee cups; one empty and another half gone with long cooled contents. Her breathing was steady and Zuko could see the cold condensation coming from every exhale she took.

For a brief moment he wondered if he should wake her up, but a closer look at her face revealed dark circles just under her eyes. It was clear she had been in here for hours, maybe even all night. He stood there awkwardly for several seconds as he weighed his options, but in the end he found himself unbuttoning his pea coat and draping it over her shoulders. Zuko knew he'd only be here for an hour or two. She needed it far more than he did.

Walking back to where he had set his things, Zuko fought off the urge to shiver as he opened his textbook and began to read.

The University's campus was bustling with life as the new term was ushered in. Students were carrying moving boxes as they once again settled into their dorm rooms, nearly every club on campus had a booth set up as they tried to get new recruits, and the administration had set up tents full of fun activities to kick off the new semester. Old friends were reunited and class schedules were compared as everyone got back into the groove of things after their much needed winter break.

Zuko had just finished moving back in to his room and was now going to the registrar's office to get himself a new student ID. He had no clue how, but he had managed to lose his old one just before winter break. 

While walking up to the main building he politely declined offers to join several clubs, but he was caught off guard when someone stepped directly in front of him. 

The first thing he noticed was her dark brown hair tied back in a neat braid. Next, he saw the pale pink blouse peeking out between an unbuttoned pea coat and a clipboard. Then, he saw her friendly face and bright blue eyes concentrating on the papers she was shuffling through.

"Hi! Sorry to bother you, but would you be interested in signing this petition to," she finally stopped her shuffling to look up at his face, "Zuko?!"

The sound of his name caught him off guard and he visibly took a step back. For months he had been running into this girl, but he had no idea she actually knew who he was.

"You know my name," he rasped out. He still hadn't recovered from the shock.

They held eye contact for just a second too long, long enough to make it awkward. She was the first one to recover as stuffed her hand into the pocket of the coat. 

"I take it this, and the coat, belong to you?" She held out something small and made of plastic towards him. Taking it, he flipped it over.

"My student ID! I was wondering where that went," he trailed off before remembering his manners. "Thank you for returning it."

"Don't worry about it," she told him as she set the clipboard on the floor. Once it was by her feet, she stood back up and slipped off the coat. "I'm the one who should be thanking you. I would have gotten sick from being in that cold library for so long if you hadn't given this to me." She held the coat out to him with a cheerful expression. It was one that Zuko wasn't used to being on the receiving end of. "I'm Katara by the way."

"Katara." He tested the name as his hands briefly brushed against hers as he took back the coat. 

Despite this being their first official meeting, he felt as though he already knew her.


End file.
